A family man, a superhero, and a principal - it’s hard being the city’s savior.

A new drug by the name of Green Light has hit the streets of Freeland and made its way into the pockets of the students at Jefferson’s (Cress Williams) school. When Jefferson hears one of his students making a disturbance in the bathroom, he goes to handle the problem - only to be confronted with a raging student. He shocks the student with his lightning and gets him to pass out. The drugs are found in his pocket and Jefferson quickly hides it before anybody else gets a chance to see it. Jefferson wants to go hard at the 100 but Gambi (James Remar) thinks this drug is bigger than them. Black Lightning goes to the streets to see what he can find out and learns that a man called Two Bits is the one selling the Green Light. After the attempt to get information as Jefferson fails, he goes back as Black Lightning and learns the location of the drugs. After getting a call from Bernard’s dad, Jefferson goes to the location and brings him back home- saving one of his students from a life of drugs and corruption once again.

While cleaning out a “dead” body, Lady Eve (Jill Scott) and Tobias (Marvin ‘Krondon’ Jones III) have a conversation about his credibility. It’s here that we learn a little bit more about Tobias’ background. He was a politician before he turned dirty and the fact that he was known for killing Black Lightning gave him his reputation on the streets. Lady Eve isn’t happy about the Reverend and Khalil (Jordan Calloway) getting shot, so she has to button this up quick because it’s starting to get out of control. Tobias recruits his sister, Tori (Edwina Findley Dickerson) to help him take down Black Lightning. She sees Khalil on the news and gets the idea to turn a fellow Black Lightning believer against their hero. Before Tobias goes to Khalil’s hospital room, he sends over some gifts to gifts to bribe him. He offers a deal to Khalil by saying that Black Lightning is the reason Khalil is paralyzed. He tells Khalil “I can show you how to kill your pain.”

RELATED | Black Lightning Roundtable 1×03 “LaWanda: The Book of Burial”

As we see the emergence of Thunder in Anissa (Nafessa Williams), she continues to practice using her power, but not just on random objects. She knocks the breath out of drug dealers who try to sell to her students and homophobic thugs who try to attack her and Grace (Chantal Thuy). Unaware of the extent of her powers, she panics and calls the ambulance to retrieve the two men she knocked out. During a dinner with Inspector Henderson and his wife, Anissa brought up how she views Black Lightning - all to the displeasure of her mother. Jefferson asks if she’s okay after she goes off about how “all of this policing and marching and praying it hasn’t changed anything.” She’s got the hero bug just like her father and it has been great seeing her grapple with handling her powers.

Ready to dig into this great episode is our Black Lightning roundtable:

Caitlin (@wlwcaitlin) - Writer and fictional lady enthusiast

Makayla (@keiysjeremy) - Kid Flash enthusiast

Laya (@QueerAnissa) - singer, activist, lover of all things gay

Raych (@candicespattons) - lover of iris west and black female characters. tv enthusiast

Brianna (@notevenloaded) - Iris West/Candice Patton enthusiast and MCU apologist.

1. What was your favorite moment of the episode?

Caitlin (@wlwcaitlin): Pretty much whenever Anissa stood up to someone and used her powers. Once she gets proper control of them, she’s going to be unstoppable.

Makayla (@keiysjeremy): My favorite moment of the episode was when Anissa, Jefferson, Lynn and Mr. & Mrs. Henderson were having dinner and Anissa was going on about Black Lightning and how he was good for the city. Jefferson’s facial expressions were so full of love and appreciation for his daughter. Anissa’s passion while talking about Black Lightning definitely correlates to her wanting to use her powers for good as well.

Laya (@QueerAnissa): Grace laying on Anissa’s lap most def!!

Raych (@candicespattons): I loved watching Anissa fight all those guys.

Brianna (@notevenloaded): Honestly, any moment that advances the relationships are my favorite. One of my favorite things about the show is how it’s a superhero show but still grounded in reality and depends on its relationships and puts those at the forefront! I love seeing the continued development of the Pierce family, Anissa/Grace, Jennifer/Khalil, Jefferson/Henderson etc. These writers are SO DAMN GOOD at making these characters human. Also, that selfie bit was too funny.

2. Jefferson took some kind of medication in his office. What do you think that’s about?

Caitlin: It could just be for headaches or something stress related.

Makayla: I think the medication that Jefferson takes in his office could possibly be pain medication. It would make sense to the fact that he had been in an altercation the night before.

Laya: I’m not sure how I feel about it. I just want for him to be safe is all.

Raych: Honestly, I think it may have something to do with anxiety.

Brianna: Pain meds? I don’t have a damn clue.

3. Okay! Vice Principal Fowdy is constantly at odds with Jefferson but she also very noticeably has a crush on him. Do you think anything will ever come of that?

Caitlin: She seems kind of manipulative to me? I think she’ll try and make a move on Jefferson but I doubt he’ll take her up on it unless Lynn cuts him off completely.

Makayla: As for the Vice Principal, Kara Fowdy, it is definitely obvious that she has a crush on Jefferson. I think it could easily develop into them sleeping together, but I don’t think he would let it escalate past that. It’s obvious Jefferson is still in love with Lynn, and I think that would be the main factor as to why it wouldn’t escalate.

Laya: Honestly, no. We all know where his heart is and it’s not with her but with the mother of his kids.

Raych: Honestly, I don’t think anything will come of that crush at least not on Jefferson’s end.

Brianna: Oh, this will definitely come to a head at some point - and Lynn won’t be okay with that little crush when she and Jefferson finally get back together for real!

4. Anissa was defending Black Lightning’s actions and her mom wasn’t in agreement. What are your predictions on how Lynn and Jefferson will react to finding out about Anissa’s powers?

Caitlin: I’d say they’ll try to shelter her and keep her safe at first, but I’m sure she won’t listen. Jefferson’s going to need help to take down all of his enemies, so he’ll probably have no choice but to let her use her powers.

Makayla: When Anissa tells her parents about her powers I think Jefferson will be super supportive of her, but I think Lynn will be just as (if not more) protective over her as she is over Jefferson when it comes to using their powers.

Laya: I’m pretty sure they’ll tell her not to do anything with the powers. We already know how they both feel about putting their kids in the sight line of danger.

Raych: I feel like Lynn won’t be happy; she’ll be worried. I think Jefferson may react similarly.

Brianna: I feel like Lynn is going to be absolutely devastated because that’s her first baby! If Anissa was the type of person to just defensively use her powers (like we saw at the store that was being robbed) then I think that would go over a little better… but Lynn knows her daughter’s heart and knows she’s going to go vigilante on everyone just like good ol’ dad. (And come on, people don’t call Anissa “Harriet Tubman” for nothing).

5. Lady Eve seems to be Tobias’ superior. Do you think she knows about the Green Light and who’s putting it out on the streets if it’s not the 100 gang?

Caitlin: It would make sense for her to know, but I think she’s more focused on getting rid of Black Lightning at the moment.

Makayla: Lady Eve isn’t stupid so I think she knows about the Green Light. I think she knows what happens around the city which includes who is selling the
Green Light.

Laya: She seems very smart, so I’m guessing she does know. And if it isn’t the 100 doing everything then it’s gonna be crazy finding out who is really behind this. But behind everything crazy, there truly is one person doing it all.

Raych: Lady Eve more than likely has something to do with Green Light but knowing her she probably made sure that she wouldn’t be linked to it.

Brianna: I’m getting the impression that Lady Eve knows EVERYTHING. My reaction when she was doing whatever she was doing to that body and the person was ALIVE?! Good lord. I am loving Jill Scott.

6. Anissa is making a lot of noise and not being as inconspicuous as she thinks with her powers. Do you think Gambi knew it was her in that footage or will figure it out soon?

Caitlin: I don’t think Gambi knew right away that it was Anissa, but I think he’s suspicious and he’ll keep investigating until he does figure it out.

Makayla: I think Anissa is in a kind of high right now with her powers and that’s why she’s not being as careful as she should be. As for Gambi, I don’t think he knew for sure that it was her in the footage but I definitely believe he has an idea or maybe knows that Anissa and Jennifer have powers. He definitely knows more than he’s letting on.

Laya: I don’t think they know yet but I’m honestly so sure that they will. Anissa isn’t good at being discreet. Sadly.

Raych: I don’t think he knows it was Anissa but he will probably find out soon and maybe there’ll be a confrontation.

Brianna: If he doesn’t already know (which I don’t think he does), he will for sure find out soon. Gambi isn’t as Alfred-esque as I originally thought… he’s throwing off some sketchy vibes.

7. Khalil isn’t going to walk again, but that gives Tobias the upper hand. Do you think Khalil’s involvement with Tobias will lead him down an even more dangerous path?

Caitlin: Probably. It’ll also create a huge rift between him and the Pierce family. I don’t see him surviving after tangling with The 100 gang.

Makayla: Khalil getting involved with Tobias will definitely lead down a darker path for him. Anyone who has any association with Tobias ends up dead or in terrible situations. It seems like Khalil is naïve enough to trust him anyway.

Laya: Definitely. It’s inevitable.

Raych: I’m really worried about Khalil and the path he’ll be going down. It’s not looking good for him.

Brianna: Umm, yeah and Tobias needs to stay AWAY! I was living for his sister Tori’s introduction though and I love me a good sibling duo.

Gambi gets sketchier by the episode and Jill Scott is killing it as Lady Eve!

The storyline of Bernard and his struggle with getting mixed up with drugs was interesting and highly realistic. Many high school kids often try drugs and are not really sure what the consequences are. When Jefferson mentions that “black kids OD’ing has never been newsworthy”, it hit home for a lot of people. That drug was causing a lot of problems in Freeland but it was never shown on the news. Instead, they focused on the track star who was supposed to make it to the Olympics. Both are big problems as they did have something to do with gang violence, but one was killing people quickly.

Gambi is still being extremely sketchy and we don’t understand why. His character has been a mystery thus far. All we know about him is that he used to help Jefferson when he first started being Black Lightning and that he had some kind of connection to his father. He is a father figure to Jefferson, so whenever Jefferson finds out everything he’s been doing, it’s going to cause a rift between the two.

RELATED | Black Lightning Roundtable 1×02 “LaWanda: The Book of Hope”

So far, we’ve only seen one scene per episode of Lady Eve but boy, have they been some amazing scenes. Jill Scott has been phenomenal in this role. She perfectly presents a woman of elegance while also creating a fear that sneaks up on you. She literally stood there having a full conversation while she sucked everything out of a “dead” body. Hopefully, she gets a little more screen time in the future because she has not disappointed on the villain side yet. Also, her and Marvin “Krondon” Jones work well off of each other. The casting directors did a great job with picking out the villains for the season.

“Black Jesus” shows us how hard it is to be a father, Black Lightning, and an involved principal. Jefferson is visibly stressed out on multiple occasions in this episode. He dealt with family issues along with the infestation of drugs into his school. It was not easy, but he handled every situation well. Jefferson’s powers are possibly physically hurting him, as we saw him take pills for something that has yet to be explained.

Next week, Jefferson has to investigate the murder of his father, Anissa deals with the fact that her powers have severe consequences, and Jennifer’s temper gets her in a bit of trouble. We’re so excited to see the evolvement of Anissa’s powers and if the description for next week is giving us anything, we can’t wait to see Jennifer’s in action as well.

Black Lightning returns Tuesday, February 13th at 9/8c on The CW.